Vietnam is a "SMOKING" country...meaning...you can smoke anywhere, with very few exceptions...

You can smoke in restaurants, bars, cinemas, govt offices, hospital waiting rooms etc etc etc....I'm estimating that 80% of the adult population smoke....(as an aside, CANCER is NOT a common disease here!!!)Smoking is legal in Vietnam, & is treated with the same respect that any other legal activity is ......unlike the "quasi legal " status of western countries....in short, smokers are not treated like lepers here!

Sooooo....at my favourite restaurant/bar , last night, I am seated at my regular table, outside on the pavement....the seating outside is configured in a 1...3...1 setup...1 table (mine) separated by a wide aisle for the staff to get through...3 tables narrowly separated...1 table, again separated by a staff aisle....

At two of the middle tables sit a couple of Australian families, including a kid of about 12 yrs....at the third middle table closest to me sits a lone guy, who I initially assumed was with the families....UNTIL....he lit up a cigarette!!!!

Suddenly I see him get up, wander out onto the edge of the road to smoke....I looked over to see two of the aussie women glaring at him, with lips pursed like cats bums....

Oh Oh...the anti smoking brigade are here!

While he was still there finishing his ciggie, 3 young French women arrived & prepared to settle at the table he had just vacated...the Aussies greeted them with smiles, until they realised that two of the french girls were bringing packets of cigarettes out of their purses...They were promptly snapped at " If you are going to smoke go elsewhere...this is a non smoking area!!!"

I'm still thinking "WTF?", as these girls gathered up their bags & LEFT....so...these virago aussies were now, not only making up the rules but they had deprived the restaurant of profit....

I invited the curbside guy to sit at my table (turns out he was a Kiwi...lol) & smoke to his hearts content....which he accepted gratefully, but he was very nervous about sparking up again....

Sooooo.....I girded my loins (I do love a righteous battle !!..LOL) & lit up....In the space of a heartbeat, a whine came from 3 armlengths away..."Put out that cigarette..RIGHT NOW....my son is breathing your second hand smoke!"

"Excuse me?Saigon is one of the most polluted cities on earth....on a busy night on the street, with motorbikes, big tour buses, taxis all jostling for space, the air is sometimes so thick you can chew on it....you have chosen to sit your son on the pavement, as close as you can possibly get to this pollution, yet you are whining about a tiny amount of cigarette smoke from 7 or 8 metres away....get bloody REAL!"

There was dead silence....I think she was shocked that anyone would fight back (these anti smoking bullies have got so used to getting away with this crap in their own countries, that it is inconceivable that anyone would defend themselves...we have become timid little things , too frightened to stand up for our rights )

Her mouth opened & closed a few times, much like a stunned goldfish, before she subsided into a sulking heap, face like a smacked arse...lmao

They then packed up & left , in high dudgeon...muttering about finding another restaurant....LMAOOOOOOOOOOO...good luck with that, sweetheart!

Do NOT come to another country where the culture is different & try to impose YOUR conditions....if you dont like it, go home!

Fair enough and well said! Respect other countrys and cultures and don't impose your own arrogant attitudes onto others. I had a good laugh at the picture that popped into my mind of the aussie womans face.